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In most US states anybody can make an arrest if they reasonably believe a felony has taken place, and can even make an arrest for misdemeanors that involve "bre

• dragonwriter 12y ago
  > In most US states anybody can make an arrest if they reasonably believe a felony has taken place IIRC, that's incorrect; in most US states, the rule is that non-felonies (if lawfully subject to such arrests at all) subject to citizens arrest only if they occur in the presence of the arresting person (not if the arresting person merely reasonably believes that they have occurred), and even for felonies the arresting person must reasonably believe that the arrested party committed the felony, but the felony must also have actually occurred, otherwise the arresting person is liable for false arrest even with reasonable belief that the arrested party had committed a felony.
  • tsotha 12y ago
    >...and even for felonies the arresting person must reasonably believe that the arrested party committed the felony, but the felony must also have actually occurred, otherwise the arresting person is liable for false arrest even with reasonable belief that the arrested party had committed a felony. I don't believe this is true, though I suspect we're getting off into the details that vary from state to state. Certainly you're asking for trouble making a citizen's arrest unless you're pretty damn sure you know exactly what's going on.